Throughout the entire NFL regular season, defense was almost nonexistent. 

It seemed as though fantasy football numbers mattered more than stopping the other team. This year, when Drew Brees broke Dan Marino’s passing record on the final play of a decisive win over the Atlanta Falcons, he didn’t barely pass the record — he flew past it. He did it with a game left to play in the regular season. 

The Patriot’s Rob Gronkowski shattered the old single-season record for touchdowns caught by a tight end in the regular season of 13 with 17. 

To those of us who are active in fantasy football, we know that Gronkowski was arguably an MVP in terms of value. 

Also in the receiving column, Calvin Johnson, or Megatron, was a freak of nature the entire season. More so, he was uncoverable the first five weeks of the season. Megatron tied Cris Carter’s record of four straight games with two touchdown catches.

If he would’ve caught another two against the Bears in week five, the record would have been his. Unfortunately, he had a measly five catches, 130 yards and a score, including a 73-yard bomb where he was a blur past the Bears’ secondary. 

Johnson was on pace through the first four games to catch 32 touchdown passes. That woud have been nine more than the record. But as defenses started to double- and triple-cover Megatron almost every play, his production lessened and he ended the year with 16 touchdown catches. 

Aside from all the gaudy numbers put up this regular season, the playoffs have proved true a saying as old as the game of football itself: “Defense wins championships.”

Not many folks thought the 49ers would beat the Saints. We thought if San Francisco could win, it would be a low-scoring game — definitely not the 36-32 shootout we saw where half the points were scored in the fourth quarter. 

The scoring wasn’t what won the game for the 49ers though. As clutch as Vernon Davis was and how well Alex Smith played, it was the defense that won it. The 49ers picked off Drew Brees twice and forced three fumbles. For those of you who are Vikings fans, it brings back memories of ’09 when the Saints forced the Vikings to turn it over five times, four in the second half. 

On the other side of the NFC, the Giants — the hottest team in the league — blitzkrieged the Packers the entire game. Now that the Packers aren’t a gritty, Brett Favre-led team that thrives in the cold, the defense proved to be more valuable. 

The Giants have won their last three games decisively and there is no doubt that it rings a bell of the 2007 season when the Giants won every playoff game on the road before pulling off one of the biggest upsets of all-time in the Super Bowl, beating the Patriots. The Giants, like the 49ers, won the game by being better on defense. They forced the Packers to turn the ball over four times and “discount double choke,” if we may.

The Ravens are in the AFC title game, while no doubt being led by their aging — yet skilled and mean — defense. The Ravens also forced four turnovers against the Texans on Sunday. Yes, Houston was being led by rookie T.J. Yates, but he led them for a good part of the season and easily past a stout Cincinnati Bengal squad only a week ago.

The recurring theme is defense. No matter how much the game is changing, defenses still get the job done when it counts. No matter how many records are broken, that theme is still going to ring true.

Three of the four remaining teams are led by their defenses. The only one that isn’t is New England, but Belichick and Co. surely have plenty of “film” on the opposing teams, if you catch our drift.